By now, we’ve all been warned not to heat up food in plastic containers: the chemicals leach into the food. There are more than 16,000 chemicals used in plastics manufacturing and over 1,000 of those are suspected of disrupting our endocrine systems. In fact, they’re called endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). A common example is BPA, which stands for bisphenol A, an industrial chemical that has been used to make certain plastics and resins since the 1950s. It’s often found in food and beverage containers and in resins that coat the inside of food cans.
Our endocrine systems act like well-oiled machines,
releasing certain hormones in precise quantities and at precise times to reach
receptors spread throughout the body. The endocrine system helps to moderate
everything from fertility and reproduction to growth, metabolism, immunity and
brain development. The problem with EDCs is that they mimic, block, and
otherwise disrupt normal hormone functioning and lead to a cascade of signaling
that is not supposed to happen in that moment. Synthetic EDCs have a similar
structure and size to dozens of hormones, including estrogen, testosterone, and
thyroid hormones. BPA, for example, mimics estrogen. Pregnancy and fetal and
infant development are considered periods of heightened vulnerability to the
effects of EDCs. (I’m glad I reached adulthood before EDCs were so ubiquitous.)
Many researchers think there is no “safe” consumption level for EDCs because these chemicals don’t act in a predictable way. The European Food and Safety Authority has established a safe limit of 0.2 nanograms of BPA per kilogram of body weight per day. With that limit, you can exceed your daily tolerable exposure level by eating one five-ounce can of tuna.
It all feels rather hopeless. Our recycling box always has plastic
containers in it. The warnings seem too late for me, so I don’t worry about it.
But maybe you should.
For an introduction to this blog, see I Just Say No; for a list of blog topics, click the Topics tab.
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